Rams Win and Clinch Playoffs
His teammates call him the “Gospel Gangster,” and Aeneas Williams certainly knows how to lead a rollicking revival.
The St. Louis cornerback, who also is an ordained minister, intercepted two passes in a 24-second span Monday night, giving the visiting Rams the spark they needed for a 26-20 victory over the surprisingly tough Cleveland Browns.
Even with Williams’ interceptions -- one of which he returned for a 46-yard touchdown -- the Rams (10-3) got quite a scare from the Browns (4-9), who were playing host to their first “Monday Night Football” game since the franchise was reborn in 1999.
Quarterback Tim Couch came off the bench at the end of the first half to replace a struggling Kelly Holcomb, who threw both interceptions, and directed a pair of second-half touchdown drives to cut a 23-7 deficit to six.
Thousands of fans around him swirled white towels, but Couch never waved one. Until he had the ball knocked out of his hand on fourth down with 1 minute 56 seconds to play, his team had a chance to pull off an upset.
“I really thought we were going to win.... Once it came to crunch time, we just couldn’t convert,” said Couch, who completed six of nine passes for 98 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown pass to Quincy Morgan.
“They came back and fought hard when they could have packed it up,” Ram safety Adam Archuleta said. “But [the Williams interceptions were] what we needed. It kind of kick-started us.”
The Rams have emerged from a once-fuzzy NFC picture to join Philadelphia as one of the two top teams in the conference. The victory clinched a playoff spot and winning on a frigid night in a hostile, high-decibel setting was essential for St. Louis players itching to prove they’re not a team that only plays well indoors. The Rams are 4-3 on the road.
“We’ve had two or three close ones, hard ones on the road that we pulled out,” guard Andy McCollum said.
“I think that’s just a sign of the character of this team and a credit to the defense, especially today.”
Ram defensive coordinator Lovie Smith has been using a more aggressive approach in recent weeks, and his defense is starting to look every bit as dominating as it was during the 2001 season, when the Rams last reached the Super Bowl.
Williams was a key component that season, and he was the star Monday night.
“He basically won the game all by himself,” linebacker Tommy Polley said.
The first interception came with 1:13 to play in the half, when Holcomb tried to connect with Morgan over the middle. Williams stepped up, wrapped his hands around the pass and ran it back 46 yards for a touchdown.
The Browns got the ball back and, two passes later, Williams picked off another one, this time returning it 27 yards to the Cleveland 20. Two plays later, the Rams scored for a 23-7 lead.
Williams, 35, said he can’t remember intercepting two passes in such a short period of time.
“I’ve come close,” he said. “Not two balls. A fumble recovery and a pick. But this was certainly amazing.... Being in position is one thing, but being able to make a play on the ball, it’s just a blessing to do it.”
It has been 10 years since the Browns last won a Monday night game. At times this season they have foundered like an expansion team. They followed a 3-3 start by losing six of seven. With the Broncos, Ravens and Bengals remaining on their schedule, the Browns will be hard-pressed to finish 6-10.
Cleveland Coach Butch Davis was emboldened by the second-half performance of his injury-riddled team.
“In some respects, this is about as gutsy of a performance by a football team in the face of a ton of adversity with guys getting hurt and going down,” he said. “We were a team that refused to quit and give up.”
A lot of spectators did. LeBron James, star rookie for the Cleveland Cavaliers, watched from the sideline in a white fur jacket during the first half. But he, like thousands of other people in the stands behind him, never returned after the second quarter. Even the couple that got married in the Dawg Pound at halftime looked as if they might want to head off on their honeymoon right away.
The revolving door at quarterback is just one of several consistency problems the Browns have had this season. Their top running back, William Green, has been suspended indefinitely by the NFL for a slew of transgressions, including a DUI arrest. And Cleveland has had to reshuffle its offensive line on a weekly basis, starting nine different players up front.
The Rams’ first two field goals came on drives that were kept alive by trick plays. On the first, Jeff Wilkins lined up for a 42-yard field goal, then took a pitch from holder Dane Looker and ran for a first down. Then, in the second quarter, St. Louis converted a third-and-inches by throwing to eligible tackle John St. Clair, who picked up 18 yards on the first reception of his career.
